Episode 988: The Real Mike Trout
Date December 10, 2016 Summary Ben and Sam banter about Veeck As in Wreck and front offices hiring stat-savvy former players, then answer listener emails about the real Mike Trout, likeable teams, unwatchable players, and more. Topics * Identifying players using only their stats * Added value from likable teams * Combating rising ticket prices * World Series home field advantage * Signing unwatchable or boring players Intro Nick Lowe, "Til the Real Thing Comes Along" Outro The National, "Slow Show" Banter * Episode 987 follow-up: Sam has started to fact check claims made by Bill Veeck in Veeck As in Wreck. Overall he finds that most of the things Veeck writes check out to be true. * Ben makes a "complaint to the universe" that teams are hiring many of the most interesting former players, thus making it harder for those players to talk with the press. * Dan Haren and Cole Figueroa were recently hired by MLB teams. Email Questions * Nick: "If every player's body and face were changed so that they looked and sounded like Mike Trout, but their level of baseball talent stayed exactly the same as it was before, how long do you think you would watch all of the Mike Trout's play baseball before you figured out which one was the real Mike Trout?" * James (Fayetteville): "How much money annually do you think a team stands to gain by fielding a likable team? If flags fly forever, how much extra value does a successful team gain when fans feel like they got there the right way?" * Steve: "Is there any chance that the newfound excess money that comes from the CBA would go to lowering or slowing the growth of ticket prices? How about a saner stance on streaming where buying the MLB package would allow viewing of the local team?" * Joe: "In honor of Steve Trachel's 46th birthday I wanted to know if you thought that a good player could be so unpleasant to watch that a team would opt not to sign him or to unload him. For a business that is purportedly entertainment it is somewhat surprising to me that the aesthetics of a player's game doesn't seem to factor at all for team decision making." Play Index * Sam uses the Play Index to examine home field advantage in the World Series. * Home teams are 18-17 in World Series game 7s. * In the 2-3-2 format, home teams for Games 1,2,6, and 7 have a .615 winning percentage. Home teams for games 3,4, and 5 have a .514 winning percentage. Notes * Sam thinks that in Nick's hypothetical by looking at swing rate you could quickly rule out most players as being not Mike Trout. Overall Sam guesses it would take 8-12 days. Ben thinks that it would take longer. * During the episode Sam gets involved on Twitter with several users that claim it is in fact Sam who eats burritos strangely (in response to learning of the Lindbergh Burrito Method). Links * Effectively Wild Episode 988: The Real Mike Trout * Home field in the World Series does matter, just not when you think by Sam Miller Category:Episodes Category:Email Episodes